OECD Survey for Business Associations and Chambers of Commerce : Middle-Corridor Use and Potential

Project context

In early 2023, the OECD Eurasia Competitiveness Programme and the OECD Istanbul Centre launched an analytical study on the potential of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route, the so-called “Middle Corridor”, to become the main alternative trade route to the Northern Corridor (passing through Russia) between China and Europe. Recent studies indicate that the Middle Corridor, crossing Central Asia, the Caspian Sea and the Caucasus, is 2 500 kilometres shorter on average than the Northern Corridor, potentially cutting journey times by several days, while it could also boost trade among transit countries. However, realising its actual trade potential, the route’s limitations in terms of both soft and hard infrastructures need to be addressed.

The project will map the potential and the challenges along the route to transform it into a central trade corridor connecting China to Europe, and covers Kazakhstan, Georgia, Azerbaijan and Türkiye, the four main countries of the route.

Survey objective and structure

This survey is an integral part of the analysis and is aimed at collecting the point of view of the private sector actors involved in the route to understand the bottlenecks and map reform and implementation priorities on three key dimensions: (i) transport infrastructure needs, (ii) trade facilitation needs, and (iii) regional co-ordination.

The survey is anonymous and contains a combination of multiple choice questions, sentiment scales and written comments.

Preliminary findings of the project will be presented during a webinar in June 2023, and the final report will be launched at the end of the year at the OECD Istanbul Centre, Türkiye.

We are looking forward to hearing from you!

All the best,

The OECD Eurasia Team and the OECD Istanbul Centre